I am a business owner, dog lover, wine drinker and coffee addict...oh and a blogger.

I own 8THIRTYFOUR Integrated Communications located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. We are an award-winning Communication Strategy, Event Planning, Social Media, Media Relations and Design firm that is redefining how agencies do business.

I currently reside in the Grand Rapids community with my husband Josh and six rescue dogs, Bentley, Sammy, Parker, Buddy, Phoebe and Sarge.

Practice with me. Upload a selfie of yourself smiling in the comments.

Mondays, am I right? Seems like I never escape one without feeling overwhelmed, stressed and pissy. I usually go home, drink a bottle of wine and reflect on all the shit I didn’t get done.

Clearly, that is a horrible approach.

Here are my tips for staying positive during the week.

Gratitude. I try to write several thank you notes a week. Congratulating or thanking someone makes me feel good and they seem to like it too.

Begin on a high note. I write what I am thankful for on a pad of paper each morning as I get ready. It is a great reminder of what is important and all of the truly great things happening in my life.

Nap. I don’t do this during the week, although I might institute a new rule at 834…I do however take naps on Saturday or Sunday and it is magical. Whether you have time to nap or not, you need sleep. Studies show that adults need seven to nine hours of sleep a night. Are you getting that?

Read. Learning keeps you sharp and I LOVE reading about history. I am currently reading a book on the rise of the Third Reich and events that took place leading up to WWII. I try to read a few chapters every night to force myself to put down the phone. Let’s just say it is a work in progress.

Smile. Force yourself to smile and be positive. Even if you are faking it and want to punch everyone you see…smile. It will rub off on others and it might even become a habit.

Getting through the work week can be a challenge and it can feel especially lonely if you are a business owner. You have to weigh doing the right thing for the business with keeping everyone happy (not possible). Staying positive will only help.

I had a friend pose a question to me this past week on the future of social media. Will it remain an important tool for marketers? Has fake news, spam accounts and the ever present trolls reduced the value? I would also add changing algorithms and the trends towards pay to play to the list.

The networks we are all familiar with such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, Instagram, etc. will exist in some form in the future. Each of these companies are working to address fake news, spam and the troll issue. Does it make these networks any less valuable?

Yes and no.

The Value:

A two-way conversation. Social media is unique as it gives customers a platform to interact and communicate with a company. Marketing is no longer a one-way interaction where companies push out a message and customers have no opportunity to respond. Social networks are often an extension of a company’s customer service or their main portal to deal with complaints.

SEO. A social presence enhances a company’s search engine optimization. The more content you share and traffic you drive back to your website the better your results will be. This won’t change in the foreseeable future, how social interacts with your online presence will.

Pay to play. As marketers we want to focus on organic growth and save our money. Social networks give preferential treatment to the company’s that advertise, which seems kind of shitty but in reality is still a great value. Running ads on Facebook or Instagram is much more beneficial than a billboard off the expressway.

What will change:

Third party apps. How we manage the networks will improve with better tools coming out to cut down on the amount of time dedicated to scheduling and monitoring.

How we use social will most definitely change, although I couldn’t tell you how. Whether a company is using it strictly for customer service, product sales or as brand awareness…the networks will change to better serve these needs.

We will never go back to the traditional ways of marketing. Consumers are demanding more from companies as it relates to transparency, service and communication. 20 years ago the United incident would have received little coverage. Companies now have to conscious of the fact that they are always being watched and held accountable. Social media plays a large role in this and will continue to do so in the future.

I was reading a recent Inc Magazine article and they interviewed multiple entrepreneurs such as Reddit, IPSY, SLACK and Shark Tank about how they spend their day.

I thought, what a great idea! I will share a day in the life of a business owner…me.

9:00 p.m. Go to bed. Sit in bed and check social networks then open WordBrain to remind myself how stupid words are and then send last minute emails to drive my staff insane. I then set my alarm for 6:00 a.m. to get up early to workout.

10:30 p.m. – 6:00 a.m. Alarm goes off at 6:00 a.m., hit snooze until 7:30 a.m. Roll out of bed and head to the Keurig. Head upstairs to my dressing room to make myself into a human. Yell at Alexa to read me the news. Instantly become depressed from the news. Leave to make the 4 minute drive to work.

8:00 a.m. Drink 2 cups of coffee and check in with the team. Talk about my dogs for 15 minutes until everyone stops listening to me. I then head into my office and check emails.

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Outline items that need to be completed that day, check Basecamp (our project management system) to see what staff is working on and if there are any pressing deadlines.

10:30 a.m. Team check-in. Everyone discusses top 3 priorities to ensure we are all on the same page and nothing gets dropped.

11:30 a.m. Realize I am dying of hunger. Ask the team what they are in the mood for, discuss for the next hour then order nothing.

3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Feel nauseous from all the coffee I inhaled, begin drinking water. Write several blogs, answer emails, check on public relations activities and think about happy hour. Begin texting everyone to see who will drink with me.

5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. If no networking event that evening, go home. Drink a bottle of wine and work on multiple projects.

8:00 p.m. Elmira the dogs…all 4 of them.

9:00 p.m. Hmm…I think I might read my book on the Third Reich to switch up my routine. A little light reading before bedtime.

Before you go reading up on other ‘successful’ people’s routines, remember that what works for them may not work for you. They might get up at 4:00 a.m. to run 15 miles, clean their house, meditate or save the world…but who cares? We need to stop comparing ourselves to others and not give a shit what other people think.

This past weekend I got up in front of an auditorium of people and talked about failure. I talked about a time in my life when I thought everything was perfect and everything was falling into place.

Then everything came crashing down – it was a shit show. I was in a really bad place and it honestly felt like life as I knew it was over.

That is the funny thing about failure, at the time you can’t see beyond it but once you are past it you can see the valuable lessons it taught you.

You are so much stronger than you think you are. Allow yourself the time to feel like shit, but just remember you will always come out on the other side of it.

It really does happen for a reason. I don’t mean in the cliche sense, but in the ‘you will be such a badass’ when it is behind you. The growth you will experience and the confidence you will gain will prove to be invaluable in future shitty situations.

You are not alone. Look around. Every single person you see has failed. Failure is not reserved for just you, all of us go through it.

Talk about it. This was not an easy one for me. Failure is embarrassing and emotional and just icky. But…others can learn from your failure.

I still look back at that time in my life and I still can’t believe where I am today in comparison. I never thought I would survive it.

Entire sections of bookstores are dedicated to self-help and self-improvement. Many individuals dedicate hours and hours to the pursuit of happiness. They turn the focus inward and change their own behavior and habits and focus on the betterment of themselves. A recent Fast Company article contradicts this by stating that other people are the key to our happiness.

In other words, trust that people have the best intentions, find the good in people and you will benefit. Seems simple, right? However, we are taught from an early age to be wary of strangers, keep to ourselves, don’t bother others and generally view situations with suspicion.

How do you shift this way of thinking? Practice. When you receive an email from a co-worker, friend, client or colleague don’t assume the worst and interpret a tone that isn’t there. Assume positive intent. See the good in people.

Research on optimism—including assuming the best of others—almost universally shows its benefits for success and satisfaction in both work and life.

By believing in the good of others, we ourselves will find happiness. Did I just sound like the Dalai Lama or what?

We are in the process of hiring our summer interns for 834 which means lots and lots of interviews. Every interview we give is treated as important as if we were interviewing the Pope, we don’t discriminate based on position.

It still surprises me how unprepared individuals are, or the lack of research done before the interview. Here are just a few of the snafus we encountered.

Interview mistakes

Name is not included on the resume. I really don’t think an explanation is needed for this obvious mistake.

No portfolio or writing samples provided. If you are invited in for an interview, bring in work samples to share. I don’t care if you submitted it electronically before, print out hard copies and hand out along with your resume to the interviewer.

Research papers submitted as writing sample. This might impress your professor, but an agency doesn’t give a shit. In fact anytime I get something double spaced and indented, I cringe and stop reading.

Chewing gum. Spit out whatever the hell is in your mouth so you can speak in clear and concise sentences. If you are sitting there chewing your cud the whole time, that is distracting as all hell and unprofessional.

No cover letter. Always, always, always submit a cover letter with your resume and portfolio. Customize it to the company, use humor, explain why you are a fit and be memorable.

Arriving late. I don’t care if had to walk from Ada, if you aren’t on time or early that tells the interviewer that the interview is not a priority.

Eye contact. Look up and look the interviewer in the eyes. If you are staring down at the table that gives the impression you are incredibly insecure and lack the confidence needed to interact with clients.

‘Like’ and ‘um.’ You are not a valley girl – so drop the use of ‘like’ and don’t use ‘um’ to fill the silence or to connect sentences. At some point the interviewer will stop listening and just start counting all of the ‘um’s.

Interview tips

Follow the job posting instructions. If the posting asks for you to supply several writing samples when sending our resume, then supply the writing samples. If you are unable to follow simple instructions, agency life is going to kick your ass.

Creativity gets you points. In the last round of interviews we held, only one cover letter stood out – in fact it was the only one I read. It included a personal story, used humor and was incredibly well-written.

Research. Know the person who will be interviewing you. Have questions prepared to ask about themselves and the agency.

Follow-up. Send a thank-you email and note. If we don’t hear from you after the interview, it doesn’t instill a lot of confidence in your desire to get the job.

One of the reasons 834 has a well-respected internship program is because we only take the best of the best and the competition can be fierce. Always ask yourself, “how can I stand out?”

I have long been a fan of Southwest Airlines. Besides the fact that their boarding process is genius, prices are on point and the staff always seems pretty damn nice – the marketing is also humorous, strategic and well implemented.

Here are the top reasons I am crushing on Southwest Airlines:

They listen. Every time I have tweeted them they have tweeted back, not automated responses but an actual person responding to my question or rant.

The content is timely. They actually answer customer questions and use video, photos and more to tell the story. For example, we have all stared out the window when a plane was being de-iced and wonder what the hell is being sprayed or who is in the bucket. By utilizing video they informed passengers on the process. They also made another one on the temperature in the cabin, because we are all wondering why the hell it gets so hot right before take-off.

They have crisis plan and they are creative about it. Just last year they experienced a massive technology outage, which resulted in cancelled flights, scheduling issues and the website being down. The organization employed Facebook Live for the first time ever to address the situation, and watched as its audience interacted with the content in a much more favorable way than if it had merely issued a statement. Read more about it here.

They deploy multiple tools. Whether it is multiple social channels, video, online advertising, storytelling and catchy campaigns (Wanna get away) – and they know how to tie everything together. For such a big company, that is impressive.

What truly makes them unique, is the fact that they genuinely care about their customers. From their processes to the communication tools they use, they are innovative and their culture reflects that. Culture is the most important strategy a company can invest in.

We have all heard the saying “special snowflakes”, most often this is referring to a certain age group or generation. The connotation is not meant to be positive, rather it alludes to individuals that are whiny, entitled and expect certain things out of an employer.

One company went so far as to create their very own “Snowflake Test” to weed out “whiny, needy, entitled little brats.” The questions range from feelings about safe spaces in challenging work environments to how you handle it when your ideas are shot down. Some of the questions are out there, if you ask me. Take a look at the full list below:

Do you think this company has a point? Every business has pain points when it comes to hiring and finding the right individual for the culture and job, but is this the right approach?

If you ask me, and I by no means am an expert, it is sometimes just trial and error. You never know how an individual is going to fit in with the rest of the team until they are in the actual environment and experience the stress, surprises and differing personalities. They will either sink or swim, but you have to be standing by with a life preserver if the value is there.

It still astounds me that PR professionals send mass emails when sharing client news. I didn’t think this was the norm anymore, until I was on the phone with my Cision (public relations and social platform) rep. As she was showing me their new platform she touched on the email feature, which allows users to send mass emails to media contacts. I asked her if individual emails could be sent to reporters where I could tailor the message. Her response? “I don’t know. No one has ever asked me that, they always just send the same email to all their contacts.”

WRONG. WRONG. What the hell were you taught in school?

You want to know why we are exceptional at public relations (yes I am bragging)? We spend countless hours researching publications, reporters and stories before ever making contact.

Here is our approach.

A manufacturing client of ours is experiencing growth and a lot of it is due to the diversification of their client base. I reached out to a publication and pitched an article on the importance of diversifying your customer base and offered to write it. They responded that the topic was perfect for their audience and asked how soon they could get it.

Before ever reaching out to the reporter, I reviewed their content and submission guidelines and pitched several story ideas in line with their existing content. Boom – earned media.

Public relations is about customization, relationships and creativity. Stop spamming reporters, they deserve better and so does our profession.

This past weekend, I attended the West Point gala, Founder’s Day. The event is a celebration of Michigan graduates of the academy, as well as those who have just been accepted.

This year’s speaker was Colonel Greg Gadson of the United States Army and ’89 West Point graduate. To say his story is incredible is an understatement. On the night of May 7, 2007, while returning from a memorial service for two soldiers from his brigade, he lost both his legs and severely injured his right arm to a roadside bomb in Baghdad.

At the event he spoke on the power of a support network and never giving up. He then called on stage, his best friend, a fellow West Point grad who is battling ALS.

My point in sharing all of this with you is to remind all of us that regardless of adversity and challenges, there is always someone who has overcome more or is going through the unspeakable.

Some Monday morning fodder for all of us.

Also enjoy this photo of me completely fangirling all over Colonel Gadson. Thank you sir, for tolerating my babbling and weirdness.

Colonel Greg Gadson and his biggest fan

P.S. The event was planned by Michigan’s own, Jon Tellier of JetCo Solutions. Well done!